Cliff: Being an O-lineman

The weekly positionally series on the Oregon State football team hits the offensive lineman this week. That’s timely since that group has been under fire this year due to a lack of running game.

It reached a crescendo last week in the loss to UCLA when there wasn’t enough pass protection. Here’ a link to that in Thursday’s GT.

Here’s a link to the oddball Q&A. This week we hit LB Keo Camat. For a preview, check out the above video, of his celebrity dream date.

Also, here’s a Veterans Day story link. It’s on DT Evan Hull and his childhood military friend. So, here’s a shout out to the veterans. My father was an RAF bomber pilot in WWII and father-in-law in Vietnam.

Read about what OL coach Mike Cavanaugh wants from his players in that main GT story, how he teaches them and how they mentally and physically feel.

Here are some thing that was touched on, and had leftover quotes and explanations.

First, OSU lineman have always been fun-loving, good guys. This year, their intensity has been questioned. Cavanaugh has long wanted a mean streak in guys such as OT Mike Remmers and C Alex Linnenkohl. That’s the final piece to the puzzle for guys who work hard and are smart. They know it, and are working on it.

“You want guys to be fighters, but you don’t want to lose you head,” Linnenkohl said. “You have to think on your feet and make decisions. Sometimes it works out with someone who is more smart and less mean, or more mean and less smart, if you have the right guys around him.”

“Mentally its a whole new ball game,” Linnenkohl said of being a lineman. “People don’t realize how tough it is mentally. We do a ton of studying. We need to see things happen and work together. That’s another element there.”

Another hot topic is the size and ability of linemen so they are not over matched. Here’s Cav’s ideal sizes.

“I haven’t had much luck with 6-foot-7 guys over the years, but the perfect tackle could be 6-4,” he said. “The center 6-1, 6-3, guards 6-2, 6-4. I want strength and speed. I don’t care about if a guy is a big slobber knocker.”

“You like certain sizes and athletic ability,” Cav said. “You want to know if a guy is intelligent. You like to watch how the kid plays the game (in recruiting), not a highlight tape. Is he a finisher and a tough guy? Does he play hard every play?

“We have guys who start in high school at 230 (pounds), and are now 300,” Cavanaugh said. “You would like to get ready-made guys. Can you get them all the time? I don’t know.”

Part of the OL’s problem are injuries to C Alex Linnenkohl  (ankle) and OG Grant Johnson (neck). PHOTO/GT